The present invention relates generally to voice-activated switches and telephone answering devices, specifically, the present invention relates to a voice-activated switch that answers the telephone with a pre-recorded message and places the caller on hold.
Telephones traditionally use sound (e.g. ringing) to notify people that a caller is trying to connect to them, thereby notifying all people within hearing distance of the telephone. Furthermore, a limited amount of time is normally provided for answering the telephone, either by the calling party, by telephone answering devices or by the telephone network itself. Since traditionally, answering the telephone requires physically handling the telephone, time pressure is created by the need to move from a location within hearing distance of the telephone""s ringing to the telephone itself. The effect of this time pressure ranges from occasional inconvenience for people who can move quickly, to frequently being unusable for people who""s physical ability limits the speed with which they can answer the telephone. Other factors which add to the time pressure are being involved in a task which it is difficult or costly to immediately set aside when the phone rings, or tasks requiring hand washing prior to handling a telephone.
One commonplace response to these problems has been the cordless phone, which, if it is always kept close-by, eliminates the potential distance between the telephone and the called party. Limitations of this answer to the problem include the inconvenience of carrying the cordless phone with you, the need to eventually recharge it in its cradle (during which time it is not addressing the problem stated above), and the typical problem of forgetting where one has left it, potentially increasing the standard amount of time pressure to answer the phone.
Another widely available response to these problems is the return-call service provided by many local exchange carriers. This service allows one to easily call back a party who recently called, but you were unable to speak with due to difficulty in answering the phone in time. Disadvantages of this solution include additional fees payable to the carrier, limitations on its ability to return long-distance calls, inconvenience for the caller if they have needlessly left a recorded message, and some modest inconvenience and wasted time for the called party.
Telephone answering devices (TADs) are another partial solution to these problems by allowing extra time to pick up the phone while a caller leaves a message. Problems with this approach include the inconvenience caused to callers who needlessly attempt to create a message, the variable and potentially short amount of time gained while they are leaving the message, commonplace problems getting the TAD to stop when the phone is picked up, and the cases where callers hang up rather than needing to formulate and leave a message.
Several prior art devices attempt to solve these problems through the use of a remote-control switch, including U.S. Pat. No. 4,760,593 and German patent 2918494. As was noted regarding cordless phones, the need to carry around a device is in of itself an inconvenience, and sometimes results in the need to search for the remote control device. Furthermore, in an area where multiple people, including visitors may need to answer a phone, it is impractical to outfit all of them with remote control devices.
A commercial device that answers some of the issues raised in this discussion is a speakerphone by Southwestern Bell(trademark), which answers incoming calls if it detects a sequence of handclaps. Disadvantages of this device, however, are the need to free the hands in order to clap, the physical skill required to clap loudly enough in the correct pattern, and the need to begin the conversation immediately, even if the called party does not want the caller to hear the other sounds that may be present in the area of the speakerphone.
Several objects and advantages of the present invention are:
(1) To provide physically disabled or elderly people with additional time to move to the location of a ringing telephone;
(2) To provide people with additional time to answer a ringing telephone even if they are a large distance from the location of the telephone;
(3) To provide people with additional time to answer a ringing telephone when they are performing a task that they do not want to immediately cease, or a task that requires hand washing prior to touching the telephone;
(4) To provide people with the opportunity to answer a telephone call in time, yet also have the time required to walk to a telephone extension of their choosing prior to beginning their conversation;
(5) To clearly relate to the calling party what is occurring when the phone is answered and placed on hold until the caller can arrive;
(6) To diminish the time pressure associated with answering a ringing telephone without requiring the called party to carry a physical device with them;
(7) To allow a ringing telephone to be answered from a distance without exposing the calling party to all of the sounds present in the vicinity of the telephone or telephone answering device;
(8) To diminish the time pressure associated with answering a ringing telephone without requiring the payment of per-use or subscription fees;
(9) To assist in the answering of a ringing telephone while minimizing the need to learn new physical skills toward this end;
(10) To provide a predictable additional period of time for answering a ringing telephone when it is desired, while minimizing the inconvenience on the calling party;
(11) To provide a method of remotely answering a ringing telephone while minimizing the likelihood of inadvertently triggering the answering device.
In accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention, a telephone-answering device is responsive to human speech, provides a message to callers, and places them on hold until the called party can physically reach a telephone.
Other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will be apparent when the detailed description of the preferred embodiments of the invention are considered in conjunction with the drawings which should be construed in an illustrative and not limiting sense as follows: